I got rid of my three month old cell phone and have been using my 5 year old cellphone instead, all because of my crazy cell phone theory.
I made the decision to sell my Dell Axim on 5/21/06 and got it sold within one week of my announcement (with a profit margin of over 50%). After shipping the handheld to its new owner, I realized my dire need for a portable scheduling device. After taking a couple of days to research my options I came to a decision to purchase another “all-in-one” device, much like the T-Mobile Sidekick II. But there was a problem. Since my current phone is so amazing, a new phone wouldn’t seem like that big of an upgrade, so I came up with a plan to solve the problem. I call it “the low end theory.”
My theory
If I got rid of the mobile luxuries that I’ve come to enjoy, such as ringtones that sound like a live band performing in my pocket and jiggapixel phone cameras, and suffer myself to live in the “olden days,” I will appreciate the features a lot more when they arrive in my next phone.
So that’s exactly what I did.
I went into my vintage electronics box that was in the far corner of the attic, between my Teddy Ruxpin and my Pet Rock, and I got my Nokia 3390, which I purchased when I was a sophomore in high school for $260. The phone was in great condition, the battery was fully charged, and it reminded me of how cool I thought I used to think that I thought I think I felt when I was 15.
I gave my three month old Motorola to my mom and popped my T-Mobile sim card into the Nokia. The phone had many luxury features, such as a volume up button, a volume down button, a microphone, and a trendy “Nokia” badge on the back. My plan is to use the phone for 15 days to get fully acclimated with the old technology and then buy a new phone to bring myself to the top of the cell-phone totem pole.
The Nokia might be heavy, tacky and antique but it’s a small price to pay to see the look on a strangers face after hearing my generic “brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrring” ringtone.